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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26742172">Gilded</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeilaKalomi/pseuds/LeilaKalomi'>LeilaKalomi</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Good Omens (TV), Good Omens - Neil Gaiman &amp; Terry Pratchett</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Deleted Scene: Aziraphale's Bookshop 1800 (Good Omens), First Kiss, M/M, POV Gabriel (Good Omens), Requited Love</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 11:01:39</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>499</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26742172</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeilaKalomi/pseuds/LeilaKalomi</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Gabriel sees something special in Sandalphon. Written for the Rare Pairs mini-event NTA on the GO Events server.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Gabriel/Sandalphon (Good Omens)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>GO Events - Rare Pairs, GO Events NTA 7 - Rare Pairs</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Gilded</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>There are few Archangels. Even fewer humans become angels when they die.</p><p>Gabriel thought on it often, when he wondered why this particular archangel should captivate him so. He remembered him at his Elevation, the steadiness paired with humility. He remembered his righteousness in the Kingdom of Sodom, the way he had glowed.</p><p>Sandalphon was not beautiful to the eye. But Gabriel’s eye had sought out the Archangelic gold gilding of his skin for a long, long time before he understood his own regard. When he offered Sandalphon gold for his teeth, he hoped it would be accepted.</p><p>It was.</p><p>Gabriel was astounded by the depth of his happiness, the way his chest leapt at seeing Sandalphon’s smile. He had gilded that smile. Sandalphon had let him.</p>
<hr/><p>Aziraphale had been away from Heaven for so long he didn’t seem to know how to be an angel. Perhaps so much time on Earth was too much to expect from one Principality.</p><p>“He doesn’t understand what angels are capable of,” Gabriel said to Sandalphon. Sandalphon stroked his hand and lifted it to his lips. Gabriel wondered, again, if perhaps Sandalphon was just special.</p><p>“The love is a whole other order,” Sandalphon said. “From human love, I mean.”</p><p>“He’s around them too much,” Gabriel said. “Always thwarting the demon. He’s forgotten how to love properly.”</p><p>“You want him to have what we have,” Sandalphon said.</p><p>“No one could have what we have.”</p>
<hr/><p>“I’m opening this bookshop on Friday,” Aziraphale explained, eyes flitting between Gabriel and Sandalphon. Sandalphon was regarding him with open contempt, which, to be fair, was understandable given that Gabriel had just offered to promote Aziraphale and bring him home.</p><p>“It’s an excellent idea. Whoever replaces you can use it as a base of operations.”</p><p>“Use my bookshop?” Aziraphale said.</p><p>What was wrong with him? Sandalphon frowned. Gabriel tried to see things from Aziraphale’s perspective. He deserved to be recognized for all he’d sacrificed, so Gabriel offered him a medal.</p><p>“No, no,” Aziraphale said. “Only I can properly thwart the wiles of the demon Crowley...Crowley’s been down here as long as I have, and he’s wily and cunning and brilliant and oh…</p><p>Aziraphale was getting all mixed up. Gabriel draped the medal over Aziraphale’s head as he babbled away. This was terrible. Left down here with only the enemy, he’d forgotten how to love.</p><p>Suddenly, Gabriel didn’t want to be here anymore. He made up something, and he and Sandalphon were outside, embracing.</p><p>“Thank you for coming with me,” he said. “I know it’s hard to come back.”</p><p>“Hard to see what it does even to our kind,” Sandalphon said. “But you know, he’s lost. No point compounding it by sending down another angel.”</p><p>Sandalphon was brilliant. He saw so clearly. Perhaps it was the effect of being on Earth, but Gabriel couldn’t resist kissing him, kissed soundly. (Right, he’d been human.)</p><p>“Didn’t know you’d go in for that sort of thing,” Sandalphon said.</p><p>Gabriel grinned like an idiot.</p>
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